How to do Mother’s Day for a SciFi Fan
Moms want to feel special so I think it would be a rare mother who would agree to do up a Cosplay session on May 11, but you never know. Maybe there is a local Cosplay in town that she would like to attend.
On the off chance that Mom would love to combine her love of science fiction and fantasy with your honoring her on that special day, here are some suggestions for the science fiction fan whose mother is also a big fan.
Eat at a science fiction themed restaurant Believe it or not, they are out there. I know from personal experience that there are various “Hobbit”-themed restaurants and science fiction or UFO restaurants. It’s an eclectic thing to do but if you live near one of these restaurants then Mom might enjoy it. There used to be a restaurant in Houston called “Rivendell”. They had a fantastic replica of J.R.R. Tolkien’s famous painting on one of their walls — literally painted right on the wall. Sadly, the management rebranded the restaurant and painted over the painting about 11 years ago – but the food was fantastic. In 2011 Blast ran a story on 10 SF-themed restaurants. They are out there.
Visit a science fiction/fantasy theme park Maybe you live close to Disney World (or Disney Land) or Universal Studios. Maybe not. Look around and see if you have a nice theme park in your neighborhood that celebrates science fiction and fantasy. Suitable alternatives include museums that feature science fiction and fantasy artists, art galleries that feature scifi artists, etc. I wouldn’t run Mom down to the local comic book or gaming store unless she was really big into that stuff, but spending an afternoon looking at high quality art and museum exhibits can be fun for everyone.
Community Theater, Science Fiction Style Whether it’s a production of “The Hobbit” (although usually targeted to children) or an adaptation of “At the Mountains of Madness” every now and then your community theater puts on a show for science fiction fans. Check your local theater listings to see if live entertainment is available on Mother’s Day. You can make it an afternoon or evening to remember, to be sure.
One of my favorite performance groups is the Atlanta Radio Theater Company. Sadly they only do conventions and there are no conventions in Atlanta on Mother’s Day but if you get lucky maybe you’ll find a similar company close to you that has a scheduled performance for that weekend. If not, get involved and see if you can get them to do something next year for Mom. Try using a query like this to find a local community theater that offers science fiction/fantasy performances.
In addition to conventions, live performance groups can often be found at Renaissance Festivals. Which leads me to my next point …
Find a Renaissance Festival Many of these festivals run in the Spring and so you may be able to take Mom to the RenFaire for Mother’s Day. That would be pretty cool. And they often have live singing, theater, jousts, stuff to buy, food to eat, etc.
Put on a Cosplay Picnic You know what? If you have enough local cosplayers in your community, hold a picnic on Mother’s Day and have everyone bring their Moms to watch the cosplayers do their thing. Local filkers might join in the fun, too. Who says you have to wait for a convention to get a bunch of science fiction fans together? Take over the local park with SciFi Mother’s Day. With enough planning you might even be able to put together an ad hoc production of “The Hobbit” or “At the Mountain of Madness”.
Take in a Movie There is sure to be some sort of science fiction film showing on May 11. Maybe Mom will just enjoy a nice afternoon at the theater watching space ships blow up or something. I know I would.
Have a Science Fiction Mother’s Day Party Get your geeky friends and relatives together and throw a science fiction-themed party complete with space cakes, blood wine, and campy science fiction DvDs/Blu-rays/Videos/Cable/whatever. Give Mom that expensive $300 dragon statue she has always wanted. Round up a fire lizard for her mantle. Put together an eletronic photo album with her favorite fantasy art. You get the idea.
Play Orson Welles’ adaptation of “War of the Worlds” in the background. Get everyone together to watch “Avatar”. It’s a PARTY, dudes.
Science fiction fans don’t have to fade in and out of existence in-between conventions. If Mom loves science fiction and she wants to do something memorable for Mother’s Day, you just may be able to combine her day with her passion.
In which case, get out the light-sabers and start practicing. You don’t want to look bad when Mom dons her Princess Leia dress.